Marlins to furlough 40% of baseball operations staff due to coronavirus shutdown: report

Between 90 and 100 of the team’s staff — roughly 40% of their baseball operations department — will be affected on June 1, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal. The Marlins are expected to cover benefits for furloughed employees through October but as the coronavirus shutdown depletes league revenues, the Marlins plan to evaluate their employees’ status on a month-to-month basis.

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Back in April, CEO and part-owner Derek Jeter chose to forego his estimated $5 million salary to help the team avoid furloughs and layoffs. Miami likely won’t be the last team to make deep cuts to their baseball operations staff.

But, while the league hustles towards a July relaunch — without fans and requisite gate receipts — owners fearing precipitous revenue drop-offs are looking to cut costs elsewhere.

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MLB’s proposal to restart the season, which has already been approved by team owners, is asking players to accept a revenue share in lieu of their contracts, which is expected to cut their pay even further. The players’ union is far apart on the economic terms of a relaunch.

Meanwhile, the league shortened the 2020 MLB Draft from 40 rounds to five — with undrafted player signing bonuses capped at $20,000 — and some ballclubs including the Pirates, Mariners and Mets have already planned or reduced baseball operations pay for their staff.